Running by yourself gives you immeasurable freedom. You can choose the pace, course, and distance you want at any instant. For me the best thing about running alone is that you can let the mind wonder. I end up with some pretty good ideas for my family or students. I also tend to get random songs stuck in my head. Today’s song du jour is ‘Down to the River to Pray’ by Alison Krauss.
That said, running by yourself can be extremely boring.
To combat this idea of running alone, many marathons and ultramarathons offer a relay option. A relay is when you and a number of your friends break up the distance of the race. I have run a few of these relay races and have enjoyed the camaraderie amongst teammates while cheering on whoever from our team was running at the time. By far my favorite relay is right in our backyard: The Tussey Mountainback.
The Mountainback is a 50, yes five-zero, mile race that takes you around picturesque Rothrock State Park with the start and finish at the Tussey Mountain Ski and Family Fun Center. While most ultramarathons (technically any distance over a marathon, 26.2 miles, is considered to be an ultra) are run on trails and technical terrain, the Mountainback is run on either paved or fire roads (gravel or compacted dirt). Nothing against trail runners who I have the utmost respect for, but I prefer these types of roads as I like to know that I’m not going to trip over a tree root.
Now the thought of running 50 miles by yourself seems unfathomable and downright stupid. One upside is that you need mucho energy and calories to make it through all 50 miles. Last year, I talked to one of my former students, Claire Gray, who was tackling the ultra for the first time. I asked her how she was doing around the halfway point. Her response, “Great! I’m on my fourth peanut butter and jelly sandwich!”
While there are few select runners from the area that are brave, or dumb, enough to tackle 50 miles with over 5,000 feet of elevation gain, most normal, sane people opt to run the Mountainback as a relay. As a relay, the 50 miles is broken up into 12 smaller, bite-size pieces. Each leg of the relay ranges from 2.9 to 5.6 miles. I ran my first Mountainback relay with a bunch of State High teachers. Since there were six of us at varying levels of running ability, the older, er, more veteran teachers of Gallagher, Donoughe, and Goldfine ran shorter distances than us younger teachers of Fillmann, Lincoln, and yours truly.
Last year I ran as a team of four with some friends who are all marathoners. Both years were tons of fun hanging out in and out of the van while our runner was running their leg. After each leg we would keep track of how many kills we each had. Whenever you passed another runner, whether it be another relay team or an ultramarathoner, it counted as a kill. Both years we weren’t necessarily competing against other teams going into the race. However, once it was go time, everyone’s competitive juices got the best of them.
Mike Casper, the race director for the Tussey Mountainback, says that the race is for everyone from the serious to recreational runner.
“Participating local organizations, clubs and businesses have told me the team experience of the relay event is unforgettable and the team-building factor has added to their colleagues’ general morale, confidence and productivity,’ he said. ‘The eight-person team allows four team members to run just once, and two of them cover less than 3 miles. And people tell me why they keep coming back the next year — it’s generally not to hit a goal time, it’s for the experience they have together. You don’t need to be running long mileage to take part. People who are doing more miles can choose to form a smaller team so each runner can run more.”
This year, well, as the great Forrest Gump once said, “I am not a smart man.” I signed up to run/jog/walk/crawl the whole 50 miles. I’ve thought about running an ultramarathon for some time and the Mountainback is pretty much perfect for me. I can sleep in my own bed the night before the race. There are aid stations every 3 to 5 miles, so I don’t need to carry a big hydration pack. Even more importantly, this year’s beneficiary is the Team Ream Foundation. So while I’m sure I’ll be second guessing my decision to become an ultramarathoner as I am trudging along the hills of Rothrock, at least I know I’ll be doing it for a good cause. Plus, I’ll have an excuse to eat half a dozen peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
Sign up for the Tussey Mountainback at www.tusseymountainback.com.
Race Calendar
• Canoe Creek Triathlon & Races, Aug. 4, 7:55 a.m. Sponsored by the Blair Regional YMCA. Events include an individual and team triathlon, duathlon, 5K race and 2 mile walk. www.blairregionalymca.org/raceseries/canoe-creek-races
• The 3rd annual Rothrock 5K/10K at Tussey Mountain Ski Resort, Aug. 5, 8:30 a.m. Come join us for a good time and support Centre HomeCare’s Charity Care Program! ultrasignup.com/register.aspx?did=57215
• Pixie Dust Wishes Race to Neverland 5k and Mile Walk, Aug. 11, 8:15 a.m. at Tudek Park. Pixie Dust Wishes is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that grants Disney wishes to children and individuals with special needs/disabilities throughout Pennsylvania. They are similar to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, but are focused on the disabilities community. There is a Disney themed costume contest if you choose to do so, come dressed as your favorite Disney character. runsignup.com/Race/PA/StateCollege/PixieDustWishesRacetoNeverland?remMeAttempt=
• Herbie’s Hometown Loop, Aug. 11, 8:30 a.m., Downtown Bellefonte. Herbie’s Home “Town Loop” is a 4-mile run/walk and 10-mile run held in honor of Jeremy Herbstritt, a Bellefonte local and Penn State alum killed in the Virginia Tech school shootings in 2007. Funds raised from this year’s race will benefit the Bellefonte Area School District’s renovations at Roger’s Stadium and, specifically, will be earmarked for the track portion of this project.
On a personal note, I ran this race a few years ago and enjoyed the four miler. The water station competition was on point with Santa handing out icees and Girl Scouts handing out Thin Mints. I highly recommend this one. A note of warning: Bellefonte has some nasty hills. www.imathlete.com/#/legacy?url=%2Fevents%2FEventOverview.aspx%3FfEID%3D70469
• Lion’s Dash 5k, Aug. 25, 9 a.m., in Downtown State College. New and returning students and community members are invited to participate in the inaugural LION Dash 5k. Beginning on the 200 block of Allen Street, participants will tour Downtown, the Highlands, and State College South, exploring some of the neighborhoods that make State College such a unique place to live. www.eventbrite.com/e/lion-dash-5k-registration-47713653823
